Swallow School District

Swallow School District’s Wisconsin Student Assessment System Performance Remains Strong
Posted 4-8-14

Scores released recently by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction indicate that Swallow School students continue to perform well on the Wisconsin Student Assessment System (WSAS).

The WSAS is a state-mandated, five-subject test taken by students in grades 3-8 and 10. Administered every November, the test provides a basic measure of overall student academic achievement, with results falling into the categories of minimal, basic, proficient and advanced. The district’s scores outpace the state average by a wide margin, with high percentages of students scoring proficient or advanced in math, reading, language arts, science and social studies. (Read More)

Architectural Firm to Showcase First Design Iterations at Work Session
Posted 3-31-14

The architectural firm PRA will showcase first design options based off of staff and community feedback at a work session in the school’s library Monday, March 31, 2014 at 6:30pm. The School Board will have the chance to review these first designs and begin to consider what potential next steps are in the Master Planning process.

The district will continue to send emails to those wishing to receive timely updates as well as posting to the main district webpage. If you wish to receive emails, please contact Kim Zabel at zabelk@swallow.k12.wi.us. For additional information about the Master Planning Process, please contact Melissa Thompson, Superintendent, at Thompson@swallow.k12.wi.us or 262-367-2000 x108.

Swallow Destination Imagination Teams Have Strong Showing at Regional Competition
Posted 3-24-14

On Saturday, March 22 three Swallow Destination Imagination teams participated in the regional competition in Germantown. All three teams did their best to showcase their finest efforts and thinking for each of the challenges presented.

The Dream Team of 5 Miners competed in their first competition beyond the rising stars category in science and many months of practice and preparation went into planning for this competition. Congratulations to team members Zeke MacKay, Andrew Barthel, Lily Wakefield, Grace Anderson and Addison Koper on all of your hard work!

Congratulations to the DI/DIE team that competed in the Fine Arts Challenge and earned 3^rd place overall. They presented a creative skit about the Jazz Era and incorporated both tap dancing and musical instruments into their program. The members of this team include: Libby Barthel, Rachel Roelke, Sam Felker, Nick Proell, Jonathan Oury, Rett Fawley and Carson Anderson.

The Middle School S.A.V.E. Team placed first and will move on to compete at the State Tournament in Stevens Point on Saturday, April 12^th. Members of the S.A.V.E. team are students Mary Baumgartner, Bailey Wakefield, Jake Julius, Morgan Roelke and Gary Griepentrog. S.A.V.E. stands for Survivor and Veteran Experiences and you can read more about this team and their project at SAVEHISTORY.ORG.

2014-15 Kindergarten Registration
Posted 3-17-14

Internet Safety Speaker To Address Swallow Students and Parents
Posted 3-10-14

The Swallow Education Foundation is sponsoring Special Agent Eric Szatkowski, a renowned speaker on Internet Safety, to address students in grades 6-8 (during school assembly) and parents (at 6:30pm) on Tuesday, March 18. We look forward to your attendance at this important event!

Slogan for 170th Selected
Posted 2-27-14

Earlier this month more than 50 students submitted slogans to be considered for the school district’s 170th Anniversary Celebration. We are so proud of each student who prepared a slogan and the thoughtful and unique features of each submission. While the final design and words used to describe our school are drawn from common themes across many submissions, we wish to congratulate Lily MacLean whose design formed the basis of the final slogan. Look for this slogan in future communications announcing upcoming events to commemorate the school’s 170th year!

The school district is planning a celebration to commemorate Swallow’s rich history and significant role in the community during 2014. There are a number of ways to be part of the celebration:

•Mail or email your favorite memories about Swallow School, a great experience you have had with Swallow School, its impact on you personally or that of a family member.
Please email or send information to:
Swallow School District
Attention: 170th Committee
W299 N5614 County Road E
Hartland, WI 53029

•Share your historic photos with us. Please email swallowschool170@gmail.com or call Kim at 262-367-200x124 to make arrangements to come in and have your old photos scanned.

•Become part of our planning committee by contacting Melissa Thompson, Superintendent at Thompson@swallow.k12.wi.us or by calling 262-367-2000x124.

After School Student Activities Canceled Due to Weather
Posted 2-17-14 at 2pm

The Arrowhead Area K-8 Superintendents have determined it best to cancel all school-sponsored after school student activities given the forecast which calls for continued snow accumulation and blowing throughout the evening. At Swallow that means there will not be basketball practices or games, Jazz Band rehearsal, or other school clubs that were planning to meet today, Monday, February 17, 2014. Staff who oversee these activities will let students know about new times/dates for these meetings, practices, and games once they have been established.

School will still release at normal time and Y care will continue to operate normally to ensure parents who use this service have ample time to safely arrive and pick up kids after work. The Board meeting is still on. Please contact the school office with any questions at 262-367-2000 x100.

Board Approves Expenditures to Purchase Mobile Learning Devices
Posted 2-17-14

The School Board approved additional expenditures for the purchase of mobile learning devices as a next step in following the district’s Three Year Technology Plan which calls for platform-neutral internet-ready devices to facilitate personalized instruction for students. Phase I of the plan includes the immediate purchase and deployment of 113 Microsoft Surface Pro Tablets and 90 HP Chromebooks for student and staff use. These mobile learning devices will be added to Swallow’s current stock of mobile devices and will be shared amongst all of the K-8 students. Forty-five of the new Surface Pro Tablets will be provided to teachers so that desktops can be repurposed to better meet student needs in the Upper Lab. It is expected that these new devices will be ready to use by the end of March 2014.

Board Hears Vision of School Community to Guide Next Steps in Master Planning Process
Posted 2-17-14

During the month of January a series of Community Conversations were held to engage parents and students in understanding the community’s vision for educational programming and expected services. This information, combined with staff feedback from earlier in the fall has created a shared vision suggesting features of the building and grounds to be considered in the next steps of the Master Planning process.

An overview of the Community Conversation Series was shared with the School Board, architectural firm PRA, and members of the community at a work session on Thursday, February 13, 2014. Five themes emerged in the area of educational programming that supports the district’s mission: Curricular Offerings in General; Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math; Personalizing Learning for Students; World Language Offerings; and Wellness. Services expected by the community aligned into three main themes including: Before and After School Offerings; Community-Building Offerings; and Adult Learning Opportunities. Based upon these prioritized areas of educational programming and expected services, the community provided recommendations for overall features of the building and grounds, indoor spaces, and outdoor spaces to assist in the generation of design options.

The first design options are expected to address both known maintenance needs and reflect community recommendations related to features of the building and grounds. It is anticipated that these will be available for Board review by the end of March. For more information please contact Superintendent Melissa Thompson at Thompson@swallow.k12.wi.us.

Swallow School District Selects Infinite Campus
Posted 2-14-14

The Swallow School Board approved a contract with Infinite Campus to become the district’s student information system at its Special Meeting on Thursday, February 13, 2014. Throughout a process in January 2014 that included the participation of students, staff, and parents, stakeholders agreed that Infinite Campus was the product that successfully met each of the district’s Key Requirements, supports the District’s mission, and promotes growth in practice in each of the district’s four strategy areas. The district expects to begin using the new student information system at the beginning of the 2014-15 school year.

Board and Architectural Firm to Hear Feedback at Work Session
Posted 2-11-14

The Swallow School Board and architectural firm PRA will hear feedback gained through the Community Conversations series at a Work Session Thursday, February 13 at 6:30pm in the school library. In January, nine Community Conversations were held which garnered participation from 23% of current Swallow families and 7% of all district residents. Each Conversation provided an overview of the Master Planning Process to date, then allowed participants the chance to discuss and provide feedback about educational programming to ensure achievement of the district mission, services expected by the community, and features of the building and grounds to support desired educational programming and services as suggested.

From this point forward the Board will direct administration and PRA related to solutions and design options as warranted. Participants in the Community Conversations will receive a summary of the session they attended by week’s end and a complete summary will become available on the district website following the Work Session. The district will continue to send emails to those wishing to receive timely updates as well as posting to the main district webpage. If you wish to receive emails, please contact Kim Zabel at zabelk@swallow.k12.wi.us.

For additional information about the Master Planning Process, please contact Melissa Thompson, Superintendent, at Thompson@swallow.k12.wi.us or 262-367-2000 x108.

No School at Swallow Monday and Tuesday, January 27-28, 2014
Posted 1-27-14 at 1pm

Swallow School is closed Monday and Tuesday, January 27-28, 2014, due to frigid temperatures and dangerous wind chills. There will be no classes or after school activities. The District Office will be open from 8am-3:30pm.

No School at Swallow Monday, January 27, 2014
Posted 1-27-14 at 5am

Swallow School is closed today, Monday, January 27, 2014, due to frigid temperatures and dangerous wind chills. There will be no classes or after school activities. The District Office will be open from 7:30am-3:30pm.

School Board Declares Space Available for Open Enrollment Seats
Posted 1-16-14

At the January School Board meeting, the Swallow School Board of Education declared space available for open enrollment seats for the 2014-15 school year as follows:

If the number of students applying for open enrollment at a given grade level exceeds the number of open seats, the district will establish a waiting list for students who may gain admission if those approved during the selection process do not accept their open enrollment slot. We look forward to your application!

The Swallow School District has announced dates, times, and locations for its upcoming Community Conversations series. Current Swallow families or other residents who requested to be added to a listserv for the Master Planning Process will receive an Evite to one of the scheduled events. Since the purpose of the Community Conversations series is to engage with as many residents within the Swallow community as possible, (Read More).

Ruric (Andy) Anderson and incumbent Rebecca Morrison have filed appropriate paperwork by today’s 5pm deadline to announce their candidacy for the two available seats on the Swallow Board of Education. Andy Anderson is seeking the open seat as a result of the term ending for Jim Douglas, who is not seeking re-election. Rebecca Morrison is currently finishing a three year term and is seeking re-election. The election will be held on Tuesday, April 1, 2014.

Due to forecasted conditions, school has been canceled again for Tuesday, January 7, 2014. There will be no classes or after school activities. The District Office will remain open from 8am-5pm.

Due to forecasted conditions, school has been cancelled for Monday, January 6, 2014. There will be no classes or after school activities. The District Office will remain open from 8am-4pm. Have a safe and warm day!

Community Conversations to Engage Residents in Master Planning Process
Posted 12-30-13

Throughout the 2013-14 school year the district has been engaged in initial phases of a Master Planning process to consider future maintenance needs and potential upgrades to the building and grounds to support educational programming and services. At the December School Board meeting the Board decided to partner with local residents to host several Community Conversations to provide context for the Master Planning process and solicit feedback in three areas: Educational Programming in support of our mission, Community Expectations for Services, and Spaces that Support Expectations for Programming and Services. (Read More)

Swallow School Announces Planning for Celebration of 170^th Year!
Posted 12-6-2013

The original Swallow School building first opened its doors in 1844, 170 years ago. The school district is planning a celebration to commemorate Swallow’s rich history and significant role in the community during 2014. There are a number of ways to be part of the celebration:

Swallow School District
Attention: 170^th Committee
W299 N5614 County Road E
Hartland, WI 53029

Check back for more information about the celebration on the district’s website at www.swallowschool.org or join our emailing list by sending a request to swallowschool170@gmail.com. For questions about Swallow’s 170^th anniversary, contact the Superintendent’s office at 262-367-2000 x124 or email Kim Zabel at zabelk@swallow.k12.wi.us.

In April of 2014, two seats on the Swallow School Board will be up for election as the terms of current members, Jim Douglas, Treasurer, and Rebecca Morrison, Clerk, end in 2014. If you would like more information on school boards and the election process, please visit www.WASB.org. One helpful resource is this Guide for Candidates which will help answer some basic questions for those interested. Please contact Kim Zabel at zabelk@swallow.k12.wi.us to obtain more information on running for School Board.

Congratulations to the Masters of Disasters who qualified for the FIRST Lego League Robotics tournament state competition on Sunday, December 8^th in Appleton, WI.

All sixth graders were randomly put into collaborative groups to work together for this year’s mission: Nature’s Fury. (Read More)

Swallow 5^th graders welcomed more than 30 veterans to their annual Veteran’s Day celebration on Friday, November 8, 2013. The 5^th grade students worked hard to learn about the history of the United States and then became a part of America’s history through the fact-filled and entertaining American Dream tribute that combined music, history, and drama and chronicled the early years of the United States from the earliest explorers through the post-Civil War reconstruction era. Also participating in the program was Fred Sweet, from the American Legion Post 294 who spoke at the ceremony and provided a veteran’s perspective about the significance of Veterans Day. To round out the program, veterans in attendance were given a box of assorted cookies baked by 5^th grade parents.

Board Work Session to be held Monday the 11^th on Master Planning Process Moving Forward
Posted 11-8-13

On Monday, November 11 at 5:30pm the Swallow School Board will be holding a Work Session on the Master Planning Process to consider next steps. Initial information sharing will include past, current, and available future enrollment projections along with currently available land for development (Read More)

At the October Board Meeting held on Monday, October 28, the School Board approved the final 2013-14 budget and passed the tax levy. The final budget is $6,512,709 which is down from the 2012-13 audited final budget of $6,604,827. Despite the decreased budget, the tax rate and levy (Read More)

Board Hears Report on Conditions and Needs of Building and Grounds
Posted 11-8-13

At the October Board meeting representatives from PRA architectural firm shared results from the first phase of the Master Planning process begun earlier this school year. The Master Planning process is an expected and proactive process used by organizations periodically to (Read More)

Looking to get connected with Swallow School? We offer multiple ways for you to stay informed and become personally involved in the school throughout the year. Check out or Get Connected, Stay Connected with Swallow School Flyer to learn about all of the different tools we use to keep students, parents, and the community up-to-date with news and events at Swallow.

The SEF is hosting a Swallow Spirit Wear Sale through Mid-City Sports for families of Swallow School. Click on this LINK to order your gear by October 30th. Mid-City will contact you when your order is ready for pick-up. If you’re not sure about size, stop in at Mid-City to try on samples. Order now to show your Swallow Pride!

The Swallow School Board approved a slate of six goals and indicators at the September Board Meeting. The goals are the result of three community feedback sessions held earlier in the summer which included participation from parents, staff, Board members, and administration and represent what all stakeholders most value as district priorities for this school year. The goals and progress on them can be viewed here and are also available on the District Home Page in the Board of Education section.

Swallow School District Earns Significantly Exceeding Expectations Designation
Posted 9-24-13

The Department of Public Instruction released school and district report cards which indicated Swallow School has earned a score of an 86.2 and designation of “significantly exceeds expectations.” In addition, District report cards were published for the first time with the Swallow School District earning the 3rd highest score among all districts in the state of Wisconsin. Please click HERE to see more data comparing Swallow's performance as both a district and school or go to the DPI website: http://reportcards.dpi.wi.gov. (Read More)

Swallow School Earns 86.2 and Significantly Exceeds Expectations Rating According to 2012-2013 State Report Card
Posted 9-17-13

Swallow School is proud to have earned an 86.2 and be rated as Significantly Exceeds Expectations for the 2012-2013 school year. This represents the outstanding work of our highly qualified teaching staff, dedicated students, and supportive school community. The district is committed to celebrating this accomplishment and the continued work of personalizing learning for each student to ensure their highest performance and growth during their years at Swallow. (Read More)

Welcome to the 2013-2014 school year! This year marks the 170^th year for our school community and we are already off to a great start with two successful registration days behind us! Next week brings PIN Day, our Back to School Tailgate, and the Budget Hearing and Annual Meeting. Below please find a summary of each upcoming event leading to the first day of school. Office hours are 8am-3:30pm and it is best to reach the office by calling 262-367-2000 x100 so that any questions you may have can be answered. (Read More)

Board Announces Opportunities for Participation in Goal-Setting for the 2013-14 School Year
Posted June 7, 2013

As the school year draws to a close and final planning and preparation for a spectacular 2013-14 school year takes place, the Board and administration invite all members of the school community to participate in a Board Goals forum. (Read More)

Swallow Students Earn Seats in WI Middle Level Honors Band!
Posted June 4, 2013

Swallow School is pleased to announce that two eighth graders, Matt Barthel and Michael Condly, have been invited to participate in the Wisconsin Middle Level State Honors Band. Out of 1300 students who auditioned, they are two of the 98 students accepted. They will perform with this group at the state music convention in October 2013.

On Tuesday, May 28th, many of the Swallow School 8th grade class, along with parents and Swallow staff, will be traveling to Washington D.C. Follow along through their picture blog as they explore the nation's capital: https://sites.google.com/site/swallowdc2013/

We continue to expand the information that is available on our website to students, parents, staff and community members. We're excited about the future and are always considering ways to improve communication, so please check back regularly. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the school office or email Kim Zabel at zabelk@swallow.k12.wi.us.

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